Stemke leads Bulldogs to first NCAA tournament in nine years

Sports Editor

The Georgia volleyball coach tried to occupy her time as she waited for the start of the 9:30 p.m. NCAA tournament selection show.

“I went shopping. I cleaned my house about 15 times. I checked Twitter,” said Stemke, who is in her third year with the Bulldogs (22-9). “Unfortunately, I hate to admit, but I got on the computer and tried to mathematically tried to figure stuff out on my own. That’s a grueling 48 hours for sure.”

All 15 of Stemke’s players, her assistant coaches, her parents, husband and child gathered in front of the TV in Stemke’s basement family room to watch the show. Not too long after 9:30, the Bulldogs learned they had earned a berth in the tournament for the first time since 2004. Stemke’s anxiety was replaced with relief and elation. She interlocked her fingers behind her head as she glanced up, her eyes welling with tears after Georgia’s name popped up on the screen.

“No question about it,” Stemke said of crying after the announcement. “I’m not afraid to say it. It was emotional.”

Senior libero Allison Summers cried, as did many of her teammates, as they all embraced each other, unsure before the start of the show if the Bulldogs had done enough in the season to earn a bid.

“We knew that we were perhaps on the bubble, so none of us knew if we were going to get in or not,” Summer said. “So all day definitely stomachs were turning. We barely slept the night before.”

The Bulldogs ended the season on an 8-3 run and will face American (32-2) today at 5:30 p.m. in Durham, N.C. The winner would advance to Saturday’s second round to face either Duke or College of Charleston.

“We have really tried to stay away from just talking about the big goal of the NCAA tournament. But that has been our big goal,” Stemke said. “We’ve really focused on the process along the way. The team has just bought in full force, so to see that moment for them, it is emotional.”

Today’s match will be a homecoming of sorts for senior outside hitter Brittany Northcutt, who was named to the All-Southeastern Conference team this week. The Greensboro, N.C., native said her family had seen a mock bracket that projected the Bulldogs would play in Durham for the first round.

“Seeing that that’s actually where we are going they’re just ecstatic that for my senior year we’re going to the tournament and I’m coming an hour away from home, so it’s an awesome feeling,” Northcutt said.

Northcutt is one of four seniors who were freshmen when Stemke was named head coach on Dec. 22, 2010, making her Greg McGarity’s first hire as athletic director. Stemke pushed for a change in Georgia’s “gym culture” and shuffled around player positions before the start of her first season in 2011. Georgia finished 11-19 (7-13 SEC) that season and notched three more wins in 2012, finishing 14-16 (8-12 SEC).

“I think we certainly could not have done what we’ve done in these couple of years if they hadn’t been so invested from the beginning,” Stemke said.

Summers said Stemke’s demanding expectations has been a big reason for Georgia’s turnaround this season.

“She deserves this just as much as our whole team does,” Summers said. “I think we’ve all fought to get this program as far as we have. I think it’s really paying off for her now.”

OnlineAthens.com aims to foster constructive, respectful civic conversation. With your help, we will provide a friendly, safe, easy to use place on the Web for everyone in the area to share not only opinions but also information of community interest. Racist, harassing, abusive and libelous comments will not be tolerated.